Submitted by Amy Wang (PEACE Advisor)

Hello to all you Bears in the lab! I’m Amy Wang, and I’m here to talk about what you should be getting out of your research experiences at Cal.So you've landed a research position - hooray! But now what? I often hear from my friends that they don’t really enjoy what they do at research. Maybe it’s boring. Maybe it’s extremely repetitive. Maybe you don’t really understand what your project is about. Sometimes, research can be all of these things. But what’s important is that you feel like you’re learning something and gaining a meaningful experience from your time in the lab. If you’re not, you might want to reevaluate whether the position is right for you.First, let’s address the issue of research being “boring” and “tedious”. Most research projects involve experiments that are inherently repetitive, which translates to not always having the most exciting time in lab. Don’t get me wrong - research is definitely a very exciting field of work, but the day-to-day tasks may not always reflect that. Because undergraduates generally have the least research experience in the lab, they are often assigned tasks of this nature. Until you show your intellectual and analytic potential in the lab, this is generally unavoidable, but on the other hand, it is also a necessary and extremely important component of every research project. To publish a paper, a lab needs interesting findings. To know what these interesting findings might be, a lab needs to generate data! And that’s why although these entry-level research positions might be tedious at times, they’re absolutely vital to the lab.However, for any research experience to be meaningful, you probably want to understand why you’re doing the things you’re doing, whether that be sequencing DNA, growing bacteria colonies, or running tests on rats. Ask your PI or postdoc mentor about the background behind your project. Why are they interested in this? Talking to them about the project will help you learn more about what you’re doing as well as the field in general. If you’re not already part of the data analysis process, ask if you can get involved. Personally, I've found that the most rewarding aspect of research is developing your critical thinking skills by applying your knowledge to the interpretation of data.Sometimes, however, you’ll find that research isn't the right thing for you. And that’s completely okay! College is a time for you to discover your passions, and that includes finding out what you enjoy and don’t enjoy. Don’t waste your time on an activity just because you think you “have to” do it in order to go to medical school or grad school. The best thing you can do for yourself is find something you love. Not only will you enjoy your time, but when interviews roll around, you’ll be able to talk about an activity that you found meaningful.So all in all, yes, you should enjoy what you do in your research lab. If you don’t, try to get more involved or see if you can work on a different project that fits your interests better. Or maybe try doing research in a different lab. And if you still aren't feeling’ it… well, it’s okay to not enjoy research. Everyone has different interests and strengths. Whether your passion lies within research or not, doing what makes you happy will help you succeed in the long run.

Today's topic is: I keep getting rejections from URAP! What should I do?

I’m pretty sure this is a common problem for many students seeking to do research through URAP. It’s just so darn competitive these days… But don’t worry, I’m here to help!

First, you should analyze what is going wrong. Are you carefully composing your statements of interest? They should’ve clearly stated your reasons as to why you want to work in that lab or project in particular. You should’ve clearly told those researchers why you want to do research with them, and how exactly it would further your academic goals. Always be genuine and specific when tackling these personal statements. Have them proofread, and don’t rush through them!

Or, are things going wrong during your interviews? I would advise that you do some homework before even meeting up with researchers. PIs absolutely love talking about their work. Read through a few of their publications so you can talk about them during your interview. Try to bring up something that interested you, or even suggest some future directions one could take. Researchers love that. It will soon be all uphill from that point onward!

If URAP is still not giving you a break, I would contact other researchers on campus that don’t use URAP. Some PIs actually prefer having students talk to them directly, because it shows initiative. If you don’t have enough chutzpah to just randomly meet professors during office hours, I would just email them instead. One of my previous posts talks about how to email these professors, so check it out!

In addition, there are also so many other nearby research institutes you could contact as well! There is CHORI, LBNL, Joint Bioenergy Institute, Plant Gene Expression Center, UCSF and a few others. Definitely don’t limit yourself to just our campus research facilities. You might just find something that works for you. Hope this helps!

Hi everyone, Justin here! I recently got a question, which said: "I just started looking for research, and I heard that one of the best ways to do that is to email professors. How exactly should I go about doing that?"

Emailing professors for a research position is not unheard of here at Berkeley. Some programs like URAP, SURP and SPUR can often be quite competitive, and there's always that uncertainty of whether or not you are as qualified as other applicants. Although emailing professors may seem like a last resort, it could ultimately land you a couple of interviews -- that is, if you compose your emails thoughtfully.

First, you should make a list of labs you are interested in. Most labs have a website that lists their research interests, current projects and publications. Thoroughly peruse these websites todetermine whether your interests matches up with theirs. Write down the emails of professors you are genuinely interested in working with, but try to keep this number to a maximum.

Once you've compiled a list and done some research, it's time to start composing emails! Your number one goal when composing an email is to tailor it to the professor and his/her research as much as possible. Start off with a brief introduction on who you are, your major(s), interests and career goals. Then compose a brief statement of interest on why you are interested in their particular lab and what you hope to get out of the experience. Be as clear and concise as possible. If you've read any of their work, feel free to comment on them. Lastly, include any relevant courses you've taken, your qualifications and prior research experience (if any). Conclude your email by thanking them for their time, and be sure to have an actual resume on hand in case they ask for one.

Emailing professors is a numbers game. Some will respond, some won't. Send out emails in small batches and order of preference, and wait for a response before sending out another. Interviewing for 10 different labs at once is not fun, and you definitely need enough time to prepare for each interview beforehand. Good luck!﻿-Justin